The Black Cauldron

Gameplay

You can walk around using mouse or keyboard (do not hold down cursor keys).
In case you are stuck, reposition yourself by doubleclicking.

Actions

Actions can be entered through the command line. Typing commands such as
look around or
open the door
may sound familiar. In addition to this command line interface,
possible actions for the current location are also available by rightclicking
or by pressing "/". More actions are listed under the "more" submenu.

F Keys

Some scenes require pressing an F key. These are emulated through the
"press F Key" menu under "more", or pressing CTRL + 1 (F1) to 0 (F10).

Saving and restoring

Sarien.net offers savegames through browser bookmarks. When you press CTRL + 5 (to emulate
F5), or type save, the url in the address bar changes, and a dialog appears, asking you
to bookmark the current page.
The bookmark is your savegame. It stores your location, position, inventory and
game status. Note that the visual state of objects is not saved, as this might exceed
the maximum url length.

Locations

All in-game locations are available by url, or choosing "select location" in the
actions menu. This method allows you to start the game halfway, navigate back somewhere
to get that specific item, hop back and continue playing.

Avatars

During gameplay you will encounter NPC's: non playing characters such as a dog, a robot
or an alien salesman. With each NPC you encouter, you can take on its looks through the
"select avatar" action under the "more" submenu.

Multiplayer

You play your own singleplayer game. Other players do the same,
and when you are in the same location, you can see and talk to eachother.
Note that the game status such as doors and events are not shared.

Typing a chat message is done by simply using the command line interface.

Singleplayer

A new "disable multiplayer" option is now available under the "more" submenu. With it,
you can play without all those other players around. To enable it again, refresh your
browser or visit the homepage and dive back in somewhere.

Known issues

Please be aware that the Sarien.net interpreter is not bulletproof, and games might not be completable.
There are known visual glitches, functional errors and your browser might even crash. I am sorry that
I have not been able to fix everyting up to a 100%, but I still hope you enjoy your stay as it is.